Global Learning Charter Public School ranked among state's best

NEW BEDFORD — Three months after the state placed it on probation, the Global Learning Charter Public School has been ranked 31st among high schools statewide and is 96th among charter schools nationwide.

NEW BEDFORD — Three months after the state placed it on probation, the Global Learning Charter Public School has been ranked 31st among high schools statewide and is 96th among charter schools nationwide.

The latest U.S. News and World Report public school rankings rated Global Learning 576th nationally (or in the top 3 percent of the 19,400 public high schools ranked). The New Bedford school was given a "silver medal" by the report.

"This is truly something to celebrate," said Stephen J. Furtado, executive director of Global, which serves students from grades 5 to 12. "Isn't it amazing that when we are analyzed beyond just MCAS we are considered one of the top charter schools in the country, qualifying for a silver medal nationally and one of the top high schools in the state?"

In January, the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education placed the school on probation, in part because it was unable to improve its MCAS scores. The school immediately promised to make amends and Furtado said it continues to move "in a positive direction." It has hired an outside consulting firm to assess its programs, initiated MCAS prep after school, and added a computer software to measure student success.

Asked how a school on probation can be ranked highly by another entity, state officials declined comment. JC Considine, spokesman for the state Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, said he does not want to comment on a report that is not DESE's.

Anthony Garro, retired UMass Dartmouth provost who is on Global Charter's board of trustees, said he is "very pleased" that the new ranking considers "many other factors" unlike the state's "unidimensional ranking."

Records show "an upward trend" in test scores over the years and the school has a very high graduation rate. It is unfortunate that "poor performance in lower grades, before kids benefit from the value-added learning, swamp out improved grades in the upper grades," he said.

Furtado said the ranking considers factors such as demographics, programs of study and participation in Advanced Placement courses.

Using data from the 2011-12 school year, U.S. News and World Report ranked schools using three criteria: whether student performance on standardized tests was statistically better than the average statewide scores; whether the least-advantaged students were performing better than average for similar students statewide; and which schools produced the best college-level achievement for the most students, according to a press release from the school.

"It's always nice to get some positive news on a national level," said Lynn Poyant, director of education and community outreach. "For the parents, it validates the work they do and the choices they make about providing a quality education for their children."

"This only makes us want to work harder to continue our success. We don't want to sit back on our laurels and look to the past; we look to the future," Furtado said.